What The Farm Kitchen does

The Farm Kitchen Limited is a privately held, founder-owned school meals caterer headquartered on a family-run farm in Ewerby Thorpe, near Sleaford, Lincolnshire. Founded in 2006 by Victoria Howe, the company prepares, cooks, and delivers freshly made hot school meals from a single commercial kitchen to 60 schools and nurseries across Lincolnshire, Rutland, and Cambridgeshire, producing over 5,500 meals per day from a repertoire of approximately 250 recipes. Ingredients are sourced from a defined Lincolnshire supply chain that includes Simpsons Butchers (Heckington, under 3 miles away), Bloomsbury Bakery (Grantham), Grasmere Farm, Moorcroft Fishmongers (Grimsby), and local vegetable growers via Jonathan Hull Vegetables, supporting a cook-from-scratch model with no ultra-processed foods and no added sugar in main meals. All menus are independently accredited by Lincolnshire County Council's Food in Schools Team against UK School Food Standards.

The business operates a B2B contract catering model with two digital platforms that layer on top of the production operation: a parent meal ordering portal (parents.thefarmkitchen.com) that lets parents select daily meals from termly menus, and a school administration portal (orders.thefarmkitchen.com) that lets schools manage selections and billing. The portal enables production to exact demand, eliminating overproduction and food waste. Schools and parents pay on a per-meal basis, with pricing negotiated school by school and not publicly disclosed; the company also supports the government's Free School Meals scheme for eligible families.

The commercial offer is bundled with a food education programme — annual Food and Farming Open Days at the farm, in-school food activity days, themed meal days, and a Schools Growing Challenge — that engages headteachers, parents, and pupils. Marketing is community-led and content-led (blog "Kitchen Notes," Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, email newsletter, regional press in Lincolnshire Live / Lincolnshire in Focus / Lincolnshire World). The company has 51–100 employees, has won Food Champion of the Year at the 2022 Lincolnshire Education Awards, and supports the FSA / DfE School Food Standards pilot in Lincolnshire and 17 other local authorities.

Name

The Farm Kitchen

Legal name

The Farm Kitchen Limited

Website

https://thefarmkitchen.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2006

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

The Farm Kitchen is a privately held Lincolnshire-based school meals caterer that prepares and delivers over 5,500 freshly cooked meals daily to 60 schools and nurseries across Lincolnshire, Rutland, and Cambridgeshire, supported by parent and school online ordering portals and locally sourced ingredients.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

School Meals Catering (Education Foodservice)

NAICS

Food Service Contractors (72231)

akta.pro primary industry

Central Kitchen & Commissary Operations (Batch Cooking, Satellite Serving) (EDAEAEAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Menu Planning, Nutrition & Dietary Accommodation Services (Allergens, Special Diets) (EDAEAEAD), Food Services Administration (Meal Eligibility, POS, Nutrition Compliance) (EDAJAHAJ)

Keywords

• School meals catering
• Fresh food delivery
• Meal ordering platform
• Local food sourcing
• Food education programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Sleaford

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. School Meals Catering: The Farm Kitchen prepares, cooks and delivers hot nutritious school meals to schools across Lincolnshire, Rutland and Cambridgeshire on a daily basis. Schools contract with The Farm Kitchen to supply their meals, and parents or schools pay per meal ordered. The company produces over 5,500 meals per day across 60 schools and nurseries. Revenue is generated on a per-meal transaction basis, with parents ordering via an online portal and schools being billed accordingly.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Farm Kitchen prepares, cooks, and delivers fresh, hot, nutritious school meals from a single on-site commercial kitchen on its family-run farm in Ewerby Thorpe, Lincolnshire, supplying 60 schools and nurseries across Lincolnshire, Rutland, and Cambridgeshire with over 5,500 meals per day. Parents and schools use dedicated online portals to order and manage meals from termly menus, while the company supports schools with Food and Farming Open Days, food activity days, growing competitions, and themed meal days as food-education add-ons. All menus are independently accredited by Lincolnshire County Council's Food in Schools Team and meet or exceed UK School Food Standards.

Product overview

The Farm Kitchen operates as a unified school meal catering service offering freshly prepared hot school meals with supporting digital platforms and educational programs. The core product is the hot school meals delivery service, supported by parent and school administration portals for meal ordering and management. Additional offerings include Food and Farming Open Days, growing competitions, and themed meal events that provide food education to children. The company prepares over 5,500 meals daily for approximately 60 schools and nurseries across Lincolnshire, Rutland, and Cambridgeshire.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Hot School Meals Service Daily contract catering service in which The Farm Kitchen prepares and cooks freshly made hot meals from scratch at its Ewerby Thorpe commercial kitchen and delivers them to primary schools and nurseries across Lincolnshire, Rutland, and Cambridgeshire. Menus use locally sourced Lincolnshire vegetables, British farm-assured meat, bread from a nearby bakery, and sustainable Grimsby fish, are independently accredited by Lincolnshire County Council's Food in Schools Team, and meet or exceed UK School Food Standards. The service supports Free School Meals administration in coordination with Lincolnshire County Council and is paid for on a per-meal transaction basis.
• Parent Meal Ordering Portal Dedicated self-serve online portal at parents.thefarmkitchen.com where parents of pupils at contracted schools register an account, view termly menus, and select daily meals for their children to support exact kitchen production volumes.
• School Administration Portal Dedicated online portal at orders.thefarmkitchen.com for staff at contracted schools to administer the daily lunch service, manage student meal selections, and issue parent login credentials.
• Food Education Programmes Food-education add-on services offered to contracted schools, comprising Food and Farming Open Days at the Ewerby Thorpe farm, in-school Food Activity Days, themed meal days tied to the educational calendar, and other programmes that teach primary-age children where food comes from and support schools' broader curriculum and parent-engagement goals.
• Schools Growing Challenge Seasonal inter-school food growing competition in which The Farm Kitchen issues seeds, propagators, and growing support to participating schools, awards prizes across the competition, and purchases vegetables grown by pupils back to use in its school meals, reinforcing the company's farm-to-school food education mission.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 5,500 school meals prepared, cooked and delivered fresh every day
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Jonathan Hull VegetablescoreOthersJonathan Hull is a local vegetable wholesaler who supplies The Farm Kitchen with fresh vegetables including broccoli, beans, cauliflower, and carrots. They are passionate about sourcing locally grown, in-season vegetables from Lincolnshire farmers to support the local economy and minimise food miles. Their commitment to local sourcing aligns directly with The Farm Kitchen's supply chain philosophy.
• Simpsons ButcherscoreOthersSimpsons Butchers is an award-winning butcher based in Heckington, less than 3 miles from The Farm Kitchen's main kitchen. They have been supplying The Farm Kitchen's meat since the company started in 2006 — a 17-year relationship. Simpsons shares The Farm Kitchen's passion for buying from local farmers and producers to support the local economy and keep food miles down.
• Bloomsbury BakerycoreOthersBloomsbury Bakery, based in Grantham approximately half an hour from Ewerby Thorpe Farm, supplies all of The Farm Kitchen's bread products — from hot dog rolls to sliced wholemeal loaves. Bread arrives freshly baked daily and the bakery exemplifies the quality of local British bakeries. Custom reusable delivery crates are used and washed for daily reuse.
• Grasmere FarmcoreOthersGrasmere Farm is a family-run pig-rearing and breeding business based in South Lincolnshire that has been trading for over five decades. They supply The Farm Kitchen with Lincolnshire sausages and chipolatas. Their pork is of a quality enjoyed even by diners at Michelin-starred Rutland restaurant Hambleton Hall.
• Moorcroft FishmongerscoreOthersMoorcroft Fishmongers is based at Grimsby docks and is a supplier of sustainable Grimsby fish and seafood to The Farm Kitchen. They source fish from well-managed, sustainable fisheries. They supply The Farm Kitchen's popular giant fish fingers and other fish dishes, with seafood sourced from sustainable sources.
• Baytree Garden CentreminorOthersBaytree Garden Centre provides The Farm Kitchen with expert help, support, and advice on which plants grow best in different areas of school gardens. This supports The Farm Kitchen's growing competition programme and school food education initiatives, particularly for case study school Kirton Primary School's greenhouses.
• Lincolnshire County Council Food in Schools TeamcoreOthersThe Lincolnshire County Council Food in Schools Team provides independent accreditation of The Farm Kitchen's menus, reviewing and approving all menus to ensure compliance with School Food Standards. The company also supports the Food Standards Agency and Department for Education pilot in Lincolnshire (and 17 other local authorities) to help schools comply with School Food Standards.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Taylor Shaw: Taylor Shaw is a UK education-focused contract caterer providing school meals to primary and secondary schools with regional operating models. Comparable to The Farm Kitchen in dedicated school catering focus, contract-based service and fresh preparation philosophy.
• Mellors Catering Services: Mellors Catering Services is a UK contract caterer providing school meal services to primary and secondary schools, with a regional, family-run operating model. Comparable to The Farm Kitchen in B2B school catering, regional delivery model and family-run ethos.
• Caterlink: Caterlink is one of the largest independent school catering companies in the UK, supplying freshly prepared meals to primary, secondary and special schools. Directly comparable to The Farm Kitchen in target customer (UK state schools), service model (contract catering) and fresh-cook positioning.
• Edwards and Ward: Edwards and Ward is a UK contract caterer specialising in independent schools, with a focus on fresh, seasonal ingredients. Comparable to The Farm Kitchen in school catering focus and fresh/local sourcing approach, although it serves the independent (private) school segment primarily.
• Harrison Catering Services: Harrison Catering Services is a UK independent school meal caterer supplying primary and secondary schools with fresh, hot meals. Comparable to The Farm Kitchen in target market (UK schools), contract-based meal delivery and fresh-cook philosophy.
• Dolce School Catering: Dolce School Catering provides primary and secondary school meal services across the UK with a focus on fresh, locally sourced ingredients. Comparable to The Farm Kitchen in B2B school catering model and emphasis on local sourcing and fresh preparation.
• Holroyd Howe: Holroyd Howe is a UK contract caterer primarily serving independent schools and colleges with a focus on fresh, seasonal menus. Comparable to The Farm Kitchen in school catering service model and fresh/local ingredient emphasis, though focused on independent (private) schools.

Broad incumbents

• Elior UK: Elior UK is a major contract caterer in the UK operating across education, workplace and healthcare catering, including primary and secondary schools. Comparable to The Farm Kitchen in B2B contract catering for schools but at significantly larger scale and broader sector focus.
• Sodexo Education: Sodexo Education is the UK schools arm of global contract caterer Sodexo, providing school meals to state and independent schools. Comparable to The Farm Kitchen in serving UK school meal contracts but operates as part of a much wider facilities management and food services portfolio.
• Chartwells (Compass Group): Chartwells is the education division of Compass Group, one of the world's largest contract food services companies, supplying school meals across the UK. Comparable to The Farm Kitchen in target market (UK schools) but operates at significantly greater scale and as part of a multi-vertical foodservice portfolio.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/tfk_lincs
• Facebookfacebook.com/thefarmkitchenlincs
• Instagraminstagram.com/_thefarmkitchenlincs

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Farm Kitchen